Reprinted from Show Technology magazine, fall 1998

When North Carolina nightclub impresario Paul Talley needed to remodel his legendary Club Zero, he knew he'd probably have to import the talent. Through friends Talley found Scott A. Feiwell in Los Angeles. Feiwell, who has worked primarily in L.A.. was up for the challenge. The existing lighting system consisted of eight LWR Emulators, twelve Dataflash, and approximately one hundred PAR 36 pinspots controlled by NSI remote dimmer packs. Talley stressed to Feiwell that he wanted the best lighting and sound package he could get within a reasonable budget. Scott looked to Towards 2000 in Burbank to assist in the design process.

"Although slightly dated, this club had an excellent starter system," T2K notes. By revamping the Emulators and updating all the existing dimmers to DMX, interfacing control data became easier. Feiwell incorporated eight Technobeams, eight Trackspots, two SGM Color Dynamics and an Elektralite CP1OO console. By using a Dove Systems 48 channel DMX to analog converter, all the presets on the existing Emulator LCD and Dataflash LCD controllers could be accessed.

T2K was pleasantly surprised with the mix of Emulator, Trackspot, Technobeam, and Dataflash. "The blend of the older LWR Emulators and the difference of color temperature between the moving lights gives a great visual blend and really lets each group of fixtures stand out. The surprising hit of the system is really the Emulators. Even though they were almost eight years old, all they needed were new lamps and a thorough cleaning to perform flawlessly."

While a Towards 2000 associate was the overall system designer, he requested that Patrick Dierson of Group One do the lion's share of programming on the CP100. Their objective was to layer hundreds of looks together as presets, and make them simple to access for a new and relatively inexperienced operator. Feiwell's touch also included a powerful neon lit chandelier as a centerpiece for the lounge area. His high tech back bar design contrasted well with the original brick and tile bar. Another unusual effect is the water effect ceiling panels by Brightman Engineering of Santa Cruz, CA. These panels are placed overhead in the entrance hallway and are back lit by dimmable fluorescents to create a bizarre tunnel effect before reaching the main club area.

Zero's audio system is comprised of eight Radian 12" two way cabinets and three dual l8" Radian subwoofers. All the amps are OSC with processing by Rane. A Dbx compressor limiter keeps sound lewel maintained at a maximum of about 118 db.

Scott A. Feiwell's other recent credits include the Congo Room in Los Angeles and corporate clients such as Hugo Boss and Vanity Fair.